I am a newbie. I’m reading Tage Frid’s books and have been teaching myself joinery with handtools. Last month I decided it was time to buy a tablesaw and I bought a ridgid 4512. I was pretty happy with it until I realized that my blade was moving laterally when I raised or lowered it. It appeared to stay aligned but I didn’t like the look of that blade moving left and right. I hauled it back to Home Depot and now I have an unopened 4512 in the back of my van.

Part of me wants to unload it and put it together and just assume that I won’t be unlucky enough to have to a defect on two different saws. Another part of me thinks I should just take the box back to HD, get my cash back and go with a completely different saw. I really can’t afford, and don’t want to, spend any more than $1000. My question is how much more do I need to spend over the 4512 to really reach a different level of build quality and quality control? If the next breakpoint isn’t really till I hit $1500 then that’s just a bridge too far for me.

Any advice would be welcomed.

3 replies so far

Check your new R4512 before giving up on it. If that one’s bad too, you can return it and look into some of the entry level Steel City or Rikon saws ($600-$800), or something like the Craftsman 22116 made by Steel City (goes on sale in the $850-$900 range), or take a look at a Grizzly G0661 or G0715P, or the Porter Cable PCB270TS (~ $600). Jet has a Proshop model in the $1000 range. I’d also be checking Craigslist daily for a good used saw.

I have a 4512, and the c clips on the worm gear fell off on the raise/lower much. Once that was fixed by me since I had the saw over 180 days at the time, it has been good. I’d say on your old one the cast moon gear that mates to the blade assembly and the raise/lower worm gear was loose. I can’t imagine another like that in a row.

I’d look at Steel City or Griz 661 saws for the cabinet mounted trunnion design.The PC and Grizzly 715 have similar design to the Ridgid with table mounted trunnions.For me the next step up from where you are has got to have cabinet mounted trunnions.

I feel your pain as I have a Craftsman 21833, same saw as the Ridgid 4512, with the side shifting trunnion defect, but I am stuck with mine; had it 3 years.

-- Michael :-{| Don't anthropomorphise your tools, they hate it when you do that.